Going Green is not something that happens overnight.
It's a laid out plan on how each and every one of us must think green whenever we can.
Gone are the days when you left it up to the other guy.
You and I are the other guy.
Start Simple.
That's the Plan.
Included are some small steps that you can take that don't cost anything (other than effort).
The key to going green is to take it slow.
Most people have given some amount of thought to living a more environmentally friendly lifestyle, but frequently become overwhelmed as where to start so they delay taking that first step.
Success is obtained by forming a plan that can be executed over time.
Try to make one or two changes ever 30 - 60 days so you allow it to become habit before taking on the next steps.
For anything to become a "habit" you must repeat the step for up to six weeks.
Then it becomes natural, and you do it without thought.
It's like learning to turn out the lights when you leave a room or turn off the TV that no one is watching.
So where to begin? I will list many small steps that help the environment in a very small but positive way.
Pick two and put them into effect right away.
Another key to success is to take action.
Mark it on your calendar and look in advance where the 30 - 45 days ends.
Then go ahead and pick your next goals.
Plan what you want to try at the end of your habit forming period.
As you review the list you may adjust the idea to fit your circumstances.
Going green requires commitment, time, patience and flexibility.
What works for one person, may not work for the next.
Don't worry about the other guy for now.
If every American took just one step per month to go green, there is a very good chance that we will have a country to be proud of as leaders in the world in the race to become Eco-friendly.
Before I get on my soap box, here are a few ideas to get you started.
You may already be doing some of them and for that I say "Thank You.
" Recycle everything you can just don't try to do it all at once.
Most people and businesses recycle aluminum.
If you don't, start.
Even if you don't care about the money that you can collect by selling it to a recycling center, you can donate the collected bags to a neighbor, church or scout in your area.
Believe me, you can find someone fairly easy who would love to pick up your saved aluminum and collect the money themselves.
Recycle glass.
Glass is a little harder to recycle because it doesn't crush down like aluminum.
One way to get around this is to drop the glass into a metal container and allow it to break as you do.
Broken glass requires less storage.
Glass can be recycled over and over again so actually not one piece of glass should be thrown in the landfill.
Do check whether or not you have to separate clear from colored glass.
Recycle paper.
Almost every piece of paper, cardboard, phone book, copy paper, junk mail and the list goes on, should be reused.
And in you effort to recycle paper, also purchase items that are made from recycled paper.
There will come a day when you will be impressed to have a document or a sales flyer come in the mail that is printed on recycled paper.
You will give more credit to that business for doing their part in the Green Movement.
Purchase reusable grocery sacks.
You can get them for a very reasonable price on eBay.
Don't pay for those expensive one's they try to sell in the grocery stores.
You are already spending to much there already...
I know I am.
There are only 3 drawbacks to using them.
1.
They are so strong you can easily overload them and the handles will not break.
2.
You have to get into the habit of getting them back out to your car once you've unloaded them.
And 3.
it's hard to use them at the self check areas.
In most stores you throw off the scale on the purchased side of the scanner do to the extra few ounces that they weigh.
I believe they will get this problem worked out soon as more people use them.
As an added bonus, you can purchase one's that are insulated to help keep your cold items cold until you get home.
Refuse grocery bags.
Have you noticed that many times when you are purchasing one or two items, they always stick them in a plastic bag.
If you can carry them without the bag, refuse one.
Recycle used electronics, especially cell phones and ink jets.
You can get special mail in bags at Pets-mart to send them to them to Pets-mart Charities and the postage is on them.
Recycle your batteries.
No batteries of any type should end up in the landfill.
Go one step further and use rechargeable batteries whenever possible.
Computers should be taken to reputable recyclers.
Be careful who you surrender it to.
It doesn't take long for a professional hacker to retrieve personal information that may be stored on the hard drive.
Don't become a victim of identity theft trying to do the right thing for the environment.
Dry your clothes outside whenever possible.
Use eco-friendly products that are biodegradable, perfume and dye free.
Purchase items in recyclable or biodegradable containers whenever possible.
Recycle plastic.
Donate used or excess materials when doing a house project.
Call a junk man to pick up your used appliances.
Use building materials that are labeled "Green" or "Eco-friendly".
Be a conscious driver.
Carpool if possible.
Even with gas prices down a bit for the moment, it's still important that we reduce our fuel consumption overall.
Drive 65 mph on the highway.
Properly inflate your tires.
Consolidate your trips.
Keep you car serviced regularly.
Empty your trunk of excess waste.
It may not seem like a lot, but if every driver on the road did these few things, we could save millions of gallons of fuel per year.
Recycle eyeglasses and hearing aids.
Compost kitchen scraps and yard debris.
Use your leaves as mulch on your flower beds over the winter.
Collect rain water for watering your plants.
Indoor and outdoor plants.
Eliminate the use of Styrofoam whenever possible.
Turn off what you are not using: lights, computers, TVs, stereos.
Use surge protectors to turn off your computer, printer, fax, router, etc.
or at your entertainment center with the TV, DVD, cable router.
You may be surprised by how much energy is used by these electronic devices even when you turn them off.
As you can tell there are many ways to start going green.
What is important is that we all start somewhere.
Going green is not only easy once you form a habit of it, but it's also satisfying to know that you are doing your part to help save out precious planet.